Flashback Friday - Anniversary Edition

Well, today could not be a more fun "Flashback Friday" for me! Today is our 10th anniversary. :-) It's almost hard to believe it's been 10 yrs. It's just flown by really. But, in those 10 yrs, we've had 3 beautiful kids, bought a house, moved to 2 different states, made lots of new friends, and gotten really involved in a wonderful church. That's not in order, by the way. But, I think back to what we were like when we got married. I was 24 and he was 23. He had just graduated from college like 2 weeks before that. I was so excited to finally marry the man that I had been in love with for 5 1/2 yrs. Plus, the idea of finally getting to live with him and see him every day after being separated for 5 of those years while he was in school and co-op was just so fantastic! I got married in Royal Center at the church I grew up in. I really hadn't gone to church much in the 5 yrs after we left there, so that was still to me MY church. And, I really wanted to get married there. We did our counseling with the pastor of that church and he ended up doing the beginning part of our ceremony, with Larry DeMoss - a dear friend of our family's - doing the rest of the service. It was so special to have him do that for us. I remember getting a little teary-eyed as the girls were lining up to walk down the aisle. I was the first in my family to get married and as the reality of what was going to happen hit me, I suddenly got pretty nervous! But, I bucked up and hooked arms with dad and began my walk down the aisle. I did things very traditionally. We didn't see or talk to each other before the ceremony. I had the veil in front of my face the whole time, because I always dreamed of that moment when my husband would lift that veil and kiss me. :-) Once I got down there to Pete and dad handed me off, my tears went away and I just couldn't stop smiling! Granted, I was still a nervous wreck, but the smile didn't leave my face that whole time. :-) Both Pete and I were so nervous, we had to watch the wedding video to see if we actually said our vows. We couldn't remember! haha Well, when it was over and he pronounced us "Mr. and Mrs. Trolinger", I said a "Woo-Hoo!" and we walked down the aisle. I looked at him when we were in the back, before everyone else came out and said, "Can you believe we're married?!!". Still had to pinch myself to believe it was true. When the reception was over and we began gathering our things, it was time for us to say our goodbyes. Then it hit me. I was leaving. Not just going off on my honeymoon and coming back. I was, of course, honeymooning, but more than that. I was going to now live with my husband. We were moving to NY and my whole life was going to change. That's when the tears started to flow. I cried as I said goodbye to everyone. I loved Pete. Still do, but that was a hard moment for me. Made especially harder a month later when we left for NY the day my mom had her stroke. I feel like I definitely did what the bible says to do in that moment. I left my family and cleaved to my husband. Weddings are always memorable. But, I think what I've learned the most is that the ceremony really isn't important. It's just an opportunity to look pretty and have your friends and family gather around and give you presents. ;-) What's important is the vows you take and the life you live together afterwards. I won't lie and say those first few months together weren't an adjustment. They were. I was in a state where I knew no one really. Living with a man I loved dearly, but had only seen for a couple days at a time every 2 weeks or so throughout those 5 yrs of dating. We had to learn to be together. But, we learned quickly and I've never doubted for one minute where I belong. I belong with and to my husband and he's been my biggest supporter and the best father to our kids that I could have ever hoped for. I love him as much as I did that day 10 yrs ago when I committed my life to his and I look forward to many, many more years together. I love you, Pete.

Here are some pictures from our day...

This was my favorite picture from that day. Notice he had to stand a step below just to fit in the frame. ;-) haha

Even though I wore those 4" heels and killed my feet, he still had to bend over to reach me. Poor guy!

My family. Boy, have we changed! Micah still had hair and I was still thin. ;-) This was one month before mom's stroke. Wow. That's hard to believe. Look how different we all look. 6 grandkids later - two spouses - and another baby (Cara's preggers) on the way. Cool.

Pete's family. They've changed a bunch too! I mean, look how young we all are!! Pete's grandparents have both passed on now, but thankfully both of them got to meet Madie and Noah(Noah is named after his great-grandpa - Noah "Paul"). We've had 6 grandkids and a spouse added to this brood as well. We keep growing and changing. :-)

This is just a shot of the ceremony. Just in case you wanted to see what it looked like.

And, here's my wedding party. Ten years ago we still did the matching dresses and dyeable shoe thing! haha So funny how much weddings have changed in 10 yrs. Bless their hearts for letting us strap them down with such unusable outfits!! ;-)



Well, there you have it. Sorry it was such a long post! Lots to fit in there on this special day. :-)